Machine for processing fabric



May 5, 1931. e. HEBERLEIN MACHINE FOR PROCESSING FABRIC Filed Nov. 4, 1925 avwemtoz Patented ii/lay 5, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT? OFFICE GEORGES HETBERLEIN, 0F WAT'IWIL, SWITZERLAND, ASSIGNOR TO HEBERLEIN PATENT CORPORATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK MACHDTE FOR PROCESSING FABRIC Application filed November 4, 1926, Serial No. 146,187, and in Germany August 19, 1928.

manner as to produce a wool-like effect in the vegetable fibres, and for this purpose it is adapted to maintain the fabric in a loose or unstretched condition throughout its treatment so as to permit a desired full shrinkage of the same.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple, durable and efficient machine for use in processing fabrics.

The invention consists in the novel features, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described according to the preferred embodiment of the invention, and the invention will be more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention will be more readily understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing illustrating by way ofexample, the preferred embodiment of the invention.

The drawing illustrates a somewhat diagrammatic side elevation of a machine em bodying the invention.

Referring to this drawing, 1 is a frame on which are suitably mounted two substantial or powerful wringing rollers 2 geared and drivendn any; suitable manner (not shown).

- These rollersare located above a tank 3 adapted to hold the agent which is to act upon the fabric and which may be maintained at any desired level in the tank. Inconnect-ion with this tank there are provided a series of guide.

, passing over suitable rollers without drawing it tight and which will deposit the web in loosefolds or fanlike form onto a continuous or endless conveyer belt 6 adapted to pass over reels 7, 7-. These reels may be driven in any suitable manner with provision for varying thespeed of the conveyer belt. For the-particular use here described, the speed is such that the loosely folded fabric will take from say 10 to 20 minutes to travel from one end of the conveyer to the other during which period it is allowed to be acted upon by the retained reagent. This conveyer belt passes over suitably arranged guide rolls 8.

Above the outer end of the conveyer belt 6 is located another reel 9 driven in any suitable manner and at such speed as to feed the loosely folded fabric from the conveyer belt 6 onto a lower endless conveyer belt 10 driven by two reels or wheels 11, 11' and uide rollers 12. The speed of the conveyer elt 10 and that of the reel 9 may be so chosen that the web of fabric will be deposited fanlike or in folded form on the .conveyer belt 10, or may be deposited without .folds but loose and in unstretched condition. Both of the conveyer belts 6 and 10' may be of any suitable material such as ordinary cloth or impregnated fabric such as rubber cloth or the like, or of elastic wire nettin A third conveyer belt 13 is provided eneath the last one and running in on flat and without folds so as to enable a proper washing of the same on this conveyer if desired, and for this purpose this conveyer belt is preferably made of wire netting, and

a series of sprinklers 16 (only one or two of which are shown) maybe provided on both sides of the conveyer belt and extending throughout the entire length or any desired portion thereof and so positioned as todischarge the washing or cleansing fluid, such as water, against both sides of the moving web. From this last conveyer belt the fabric may be fed in any suitable manner to means for handling it for subsequent treatment, as for example it may be fed into a washing trough or washing machine or onto mechanism where it may be dried.

The means fordriving the various parts in accordance with the speeds desired as stated above, I have shown diagrammatically in the drawing. The reel 5 is driven by a chain or belt 17 from a pulley 18 on the shaft of thewringer 2, the wringer is driven from an outside source of power, not shown. Mounted on the reel support is a pair of pulleys 19 equal about in diameter to 18 consequently having about the same speed. The second pulley of the pair 19" has a belt 20 running from it to a pulley 21 mounted on the shaft of the reel 7. This pulley 21 is slightly larger than the pulleys' 19 so that the speed of the driven reel 7 is less than that of reel 5. The support for reel 7 has a pulley 22 mounted thereon driving through a chain 23 the reel 9. through a pair of pulleys 24. The latter pair is smaller in diameter than pulley 22 and therefore revolves at a greater speed. The second pulley of the pair 24 operates through a belt 25 to drive the pulley 26 mounted on the wheel 11. This pulley is slightly larger thanthepulley 24; and drives the belt 10 at a slightly higher speed than that of the belt 6. A pulley 27 mounted on the reel 11' drives through a belt 28, a pulley 29 of larger diameter than 27 but smaller than reel 14. The pulley 27 is slightly larger than the reel 11, so that the conveyer belt 13 has a higher speed than belt 10 By arranging the plurality of conveyers two or more in superposed position and running them alternately in opposite directions, cost and space are economized. I

When the machine is utilized for the purose of treating fabrics with a swelling agent or the purpose of producingwool-like effects, the operation is as follows: The web 'F is fed over the guide rollers 4 through the swelling agent trough or tank 3 and thence between the powerful wringing rollers 2 which wrin out the excess reagent, from whence the fabric is loosely fed by the feeding reel 5 onto the first conveyer belt 6 where it is deposited in fanlike form and allowed to travel along slowly, and from the other end of this belt it is lifted by the reel 9, .deposited on the next conveyer belt 10, running in'the opposite direction, where the .web is also maintained in loose or slack condition, and then fed to the nextand faster be t where it is deposited in flattened condition and washed by the sprayer's 16, as stated, and

' from whence it is fed in any suitable manner.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a machine of the character described,

the combination of means by which a web of fabric to be processed is subjected 'to areagent, wringers for removing the excess reagent, a conveyer belt, means for driving the conveyer belt at a slower speed than the web as received, another conveyer for receiving said web from said first mentioned conveyer and means for driving it at a greater speed than the first conveyer so as to have the web deposited thereon in straightened out or fiattened condition.

2. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means by which a web of fabric to be processed is subjected to a reagent, wringers for removing the excess reagent, a conveyer belt for receiving the squeezed out web, means for driving the conveyer belt at a slower speed than that of the web traveling from the wringers whereby the web is deposited on the conveyer loosely, means for feeding the web from said conveyer, a second conveyer and means for driving it at a greater speed than'the first conveyer so as to-have the web deposited thereon in straightened out or flattened condition, and means for washing said web while on said last conveyer.

3. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means by which a web of fabric to be processed is subjected to a reagent, wringers :for removing the excess reagent, a conveyer belt for receiving the squeezed out web and for supporting it in loose condition, means for driving the conveyer belt at a slower speed than the web whereby the web is deposited on the conveyer loosely, means for feeding the web from said conveyer, a second conveyer having a conveyer belt composed of open material and means for driving it at a greater speed than thefirst conveyer so as to have the material deposited thereon in straightened out or flattened condition, means for feeding the material to the second mentioned conveyer, and

means for washing said web'while on said second mentioned conveyer.

- 4. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means by which a web of fabric to be processed is subjected to a reagent; wringers for removing the excess reagent, a conveyer belt for receiving the squeezed out web and for supporting it in loose condition, means above the conveyer for feeding the web from the wringers, means for driving the conveyer belt at a slower speed than the web whereby the web is deposited by gravity in loose folds upon the conveyer, a second conveyer below the first moving in the opposite direction from the first, means for feeding the web from the first conveyer onto the second conveyer, a third conveyer below the second and moving in the opposite direction, and means for moving it at a greater speed than the second,

means for feeding the material from the sec- 0nd to the third conveyer, and means for washing said web while on said third conveyer.

5, In a machine of the character described, the combination of means by which a web of fabric to be processed is subjected to a reagent, wringers for removing the excess reagent, a conveyer belt, means for driving the conveyer belt at a slower speed than the web as received whereby the web is deposited on the conveyer in loose condition, means for feeding the web from the wringers to said conveyer so as to deposit the web on the conveyer loosely, means for feeding the web from said conveyer, a conveyer below the first conveyer and means for driving it at a greater speed than the first conveyer so as to have the web deposited thereon in straightened out or flattened condition.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this (specification.

EORGES HEBERLEIN. 

